Loose-leaf binder clip



May 16,, 1950 A. N. HANNA LOOSE-LEAF BINDER CLIP Filed July '7, 1944 INVENTOR. Z 4 W /& Armfi/vfx Patented May 16, 1950 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE LOOSE-LEAF BINDER CLIP Atto N. Hanna, Atlantic Highlands, N. J. Application July 7-, 1944, Serial No. 543,763

1 Claim.

The invention relates to loose leaf binder clips and more particularly to a mechanism permitting the mounting or removal of leaves therein and a free turning of such leaves all without the necessity for punching holes in the leaves.

Heretofore it has been a common practice to provide binders embodying therein posts or rings upon which leaves may be mounted by means of accurately spaced holes punched through the various leaves. With such binders, excepting when the leaves are collated in a bindery, there is always difiiculty in securing the accurate location of such punched holes and in securing a clean, sharp opening, particularly when working upon asingle leaf or a plurality of leaves of thin paper. This is wasteful of time, yet without such accuracy, the leaves do not lie fiat and irregularity in the position of collated leaves occurs. Such openings in theleaves also weaken the paper of the leaves at points where they are subject to the greatest stresses.

Furthermore with post and ring binders, the collating of leaves of different sizes may result in a lack of security in the mounting of such leaves, since smaller leaves may not be engaged by enough posts or rings to prevent looseness and skewing thereof.

With the above conditions inmind, I have provided a loose leaf binder-clip wherein leaves may be collated and secured in accurate relation to each other without the necessity for punching holes therein and yet have them secured in the binder without likelihood of being torn when they are moved to permit reference to some particular leaf.

The securing of leaves in a binder is by means of a mechanism which not only permits them to be readily placed in the binder and removed therefrom without removing or turning other leaves, but which may have variable operation to accommodate it to differentthicknesses of collated leaves without material variation in the gripping action for retaining the leaves in a binder.

In a binder embodying the invention, no punching of holes in, and resultant weakening of, the paper of the leaves is requiredand the securing means itself is so constructed as to resist accidental displacement of any of the-collated leaves from stresses thereon when handling the leaves, P

or from tearing of the material of a leaf. All leaves irrespective of their size, within the limitations imposed by the binder structure, will be accurately alined at the edge thereof adjacent their point of connection with the binder.

The invention consists primarily in a loose leaf binder clip embodying therein a base plate adapted to be secured to a back board, a laterally elongated clamp member pivotally mounted thereon having an extension, adjustable means operative between said base plate and said extension for positively forcing one edge of said clamp member downwardly towards said base plate whereby leaves inserted upon said base plate below said clamp member may befirmly gripped, and biasing means active upon said clampmember whereby it will be raised whenpressure-thereon from said means for forcing said clamp.member towards said base is relieved; and in such other novel features of construction and combination of parts as are hereinafter set forth. and described and more particularly pointed out in the claimhereto appended.

Referring to the drawings,

Fig. 1 is a plan view, partly broken away, of a fragmentary portion of a loose leaf binder having a clip embodying the invention applied thereto;

Fig. 2 is a section on the line 2-2 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a section on the line 33 of Fig. l; and

Fig. 4 is a plan view of the base platealone.

Like numerals refer to like parts throughout the several views.

In the drawings, I have shown at 10 a. fragmentary portion of the backboard of a.-binder cover and have indicated by dash and dot lines, leaves It secured in said binder by means of the clip of my invention.

This clip comprises a baseplate 12 of metalv or other material having at opposite ends thereof openings 13 by which it may be secured, as by rivets, to said back board I0 so asto be firmly held upon and against said'board. Substantially centrally of one edge of said base plate is a narrow extension [4 having oppositely disposed upwardly projecting ears |5l6., Upon opposite sides of the extension I4 and spaced therefrom are stop and alining guide flanges |1'l8 which project upwardly from the base plate I2 adjacent one edge thereof and betweenit and the edge. of the ears l5| 6 presented towards. saidbase plate.

Pivotally mounted on said base plate [2 is a clamp member l9 having areduced extension 20 provided withpendant lugs 2l-22 having a free sliding fit with the ears I 5l 6 respectively, a. pivot pin 23 passing through-said ears and saidlugs permitting the desired limited oscillatory movement of the, clamp member. I 9. each lug 2l-22 is arcuate to avoid interference with the movement of the clamp plate. By rounding the top corner edges of each ear Iii-I6, sharp exposed corners are avoided.

The lower edgeoi.

Mounted on the pivot pin 23, is a spring 24 an extension of which intermediate its ends engages the clamp member l9 towards its free edge or its clamping edge, and the ends of which spring engage the extension l4 of the base plate 12. This spring serves as a biasing means tending to raise the clamp member [9 when clamping pressure upon said member is relieved and move its free edge away from the base plate l2.

The free edge of the clamp plate I9 is directed downwardly, as at 25, to limit its gripping action to a narrow elongated area and provide space for the collated leaves between said clamping edge and the clamp member actuating means.

Adjacent the edge of the base plate 12 is a raised bead 26 so that leaves upon said plate will be forced downward at one side of this rib in a manner to supplement the pressure from th clamping edge 25 of the clamp member 19 in preventing the removal or escape of a leaf without movement of the clamp member I9 away from the base plate to an extent to relieve the pressure exerted thereby upon the collated leaves.

The laterally reduced extension 20 of the clamp member I9 is substantially co-extensive in area with, and positioned directly above, the extension 14 of the base plate I2 and has a screw threaded opening therein between the pivot pin 23 and the outer end of the extension. Mounted on this extension 20, by means of said screw threaded opening, is a headed screw 21 of a length to have its end engage the extension [4 so as at all times to control the action of the spring 24 in relieving the pressure upon the leaves developed by said screw. The edge of the head of the screw may be milled, knurled or otherwise roughened to facilitate its operation by hand. The end of the screw is rounded to avoid its engagement with the extension 14 interfering with its rocking movement with the clamp member 19.

The operation of a binder clip embodying the invention is substantially as follows:

When it is desired to insert a leaf or a number of collated leaves in, or remove them from the clip, it is first necessary to turn the screw 21 to raise it in the extension 20 of the clamp member 49, thus permitting the spring 24 to move the free or clamping edge 25 of said member upwardly and away from the base plate I 2 and thus provide clearance for the insertion of a leaf or leaves between said clamping edge and the base plate or relieve the pressure upon the leaves in the clip to permit the removal of a leaf or leaves.

It will be noted that a leaf or leaves may be mounted in a clip by merely inserting one edge of same between the base plate I 2 and the raised edge 25 of the clamp member [9.

To secure a leaf or leaves within the clip, it is merely necessary to turn the screw 21 to cause it to exert pressure against the base plate with which its end is always engaged, thus raising the extension 26 of the clamp member and forcing its clamping edge 25 with a positive pressure towards and against a leaf or leaves positioned between said edge and said base plate,

This movement of the clamp member i9 is against the tension of the spring 24 so that the spring is always biased to impart movement of the clamp member whenever pressure developed by the screw 21 is relieved.

The raised bead 26 paralleling the edge of the base plate, does not increase the pressure exerted 4 through the clamp member 19 but serves more or less to crimp the paper so that a leaf cannot he slid from the clip without a lifting of the clamp member.

The absence of punch holes from the Paper or other material of the leaf or leaves, avoids weakening of this material adjacent its point of engagement with the means by which it is mounted in a binder and the structure described permits leaves to be firmly secured in a binder irrespective of the absence of regularity in the size of different leaves. The leaves may be freel turned to permit reference to any particular leaf and likelihood of the escape or loss of a leaf from a pull thereon away from the clip is negligible.

A clip embodying the invention may be produced at low cost and may be economically assembled in a cover by a manufacturer of loose leaf binders. While the parts of the clip as shown in the drawings are formed from sheet metal, other materials may be used if desired.

It is not my intention to limit the invention to the details of construction shown in the drawings, it being apparent that such may be varied without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.

Having described the invention, what I claim as new and desire to have protected by Letters Patent is:

A loose leaf binder clip embodying therein a base plate adapted to be secured to a back board and having a raised bead adjacent one edge thereof, a laterally elongated clamp member pivotally mounted thereon and having one edge directed downwardly towards said base plate adjacent said bead to provide a narrow, elongated gripping edge and space for collated leaves between said edge and the point of pivotal support of said clamp member, adjustable means operative between said base plate and said clamp member for positively forcing said downwardly directed edge of said clamp member towards said base plate whereby leaves inserted upon said base plate below said clamp member may be firmly gripped, said bead assisting in the gripping action by causing the leaves to be crimped adjacent to the narrow gripped area between said base plate and said clamp member, and biasing means acting upon said clamp member whereby it will be raised to permit the insertion and removal of leaves therefrom when pressure thereon from said means for forcing said clamp member towards said base plate is relieved.

ATTO N. HANNA.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 682,785 Caldwell Sept, 17, 1901 821,142 Wagoner May 22, 1906 840,627 Jelalian Jan. 8, 1907 1,588,762 Livsey June 15, 1926 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 13,133 Norway July 25, 1904 31,343 France Oct, 26, 1926 392,627 Great Britain May 25, 1933 

